Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day

TGIF !!!!!!!


Good morning friends, another week has gone by and this year is going so fast we cannot keep up.


The air quality has been really bad here in San Francisco because of the fires so we have not been out that much, short walks and I think both Layla and I need some real outdoors so tomorrow I might risk it a bit and take her to the park for an hour. 


Today, 28 August is a very special but sad day although for me the memories make me smile too.

It is Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day, a day that we remember all our pets that are no longer with us and are waiting over the Rainbow Bridge. So I am going to share with you some of the pets that are in my heart and have been part of my life.


I was blessed to grow up in a home with many different pets. We had Ceaser, a mutt,  who to this day when I think back about her I chuckle as she was scared of heights and used to go up to the second floor of our house and then howl till my Mom carried her down. She was the size of a Boxer and heavy LOL.

We had in the sewing room/playroom budgies who I loved till they escaped out of the window and were not found, their names were Fritzie and Freddy. In that room were also our little white mouse called Pinky because of her tail and Hammy our Hamster who lived next door to Pinky, we used to close the room door and then let them run around free every day.


In our bedrooms we had Goldfish and two Terrapins, oy. My great aunt told me we had to feed the Terrapins bugs and worms from the garden and she used to collect them and bring them to me to feed them, they were called Ron and Eth after a British comedy.

When the fish and terrapins passed away we buried them under an apple tree we had in our garden and from that day on my Grandmother would not let us eat the apples.


When we moved to Israel we found on the streets a mutt who we called Whiskey, who became a princess. She was living with us during the 1973 war so one of us kids were responsible for carrying her downstairs to the bomb shelter every time a siren went off. 


In those days there were no special regulations for dogs like today and when we left Israel and went to Europe, Whiskey flew back to South Africa where she was met at the airport by a Pet Hotel and stayed with them till we got back. I remember my Dad feeling bad that she had to be crated so he had a big big crate made for her although she was a Chi Mix. It was enormous.


Whiskey lived a very good life with us in South Africa, she would sit on a chair every morning and wait for her piece of cheese from my Father. I still chuckle over this one when going into the dining room and there she was on a chair.

When I went back to Israel I decided to get a cat, well I adopted a cat, thinking Sasha would be cute and small but Sasha grew to be a large cat but I loved him. He kept me amused all the time. A couple of years with Sasha and I rescued Shula, a Persian cat who was afraid of everything but after a couple of months she ruled the house. She was pregnant when I rescued her so decided to keep the kitten also, my Pichevkes (Hebrew for nick nacks). She was my baby and I adored her. All three cats used to get boiled fish every Friday night and were spoiled rotten. 


Sasha passed away at the age of 14, Shula at the age of 11 and Pichevkas at the age of about 9. 


I then came to the States where I adopted Baby, whom you all know about, she was my hero and ran away with me from the Domestic Violence Relationship, was the first to be in a  DV shelter in San Francisco and kept me alive in so many ways. Baby passed away about a year after I left the shelters, she was 6 years old after she contracted IMHA which has no cure.
When she passed away a good friend of mine said to me that She had come into my life for a reason, she knew I was safe so she left me so that I could adopt a new dog.


That is when Layla who is my Boss came into my life and my life would be so empty without her.


I unfortunately do not have many photos but all the memories are etched in my brain, and today being Rainbow Bridge Remembrance Day I am smiling now thinking about all of them.


So let us all share some memories, thank all those pets over the Rainbow Bridge for being part of our lives, teaching us so much and I do believe one day we will all meet up again.


Be safe everyone,

With love and woofs from Layla

Praying for the fire victims

TGIF !!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 


Good Morning friends,


Layla would like to apologize about not blogging last week but Mom decided to have a break from the laptop and actually it was really nice as we had lots of Mom and Me time together and nothing else. 


This past week we have really been staying indoors because of the poor air quality from the fires burning in Northern California. It is so sad to see what is happening as there has been no rains and everything is dry. The fires were started by lightning which happened last Saturday night and it was a crazy night.  So at the moment Mom is working sharing all information possible on our Facebook page to help save the animals, including the wildlife.

 https://abc7news.com/wildfire-live-updates-cal-fire-to-give-update-czu-lightning-complex-fires/6381687/?fbclid=IwAR1faK1w8oHwi6sEwla09ePvnT0R129eonpyhxs4YmVFZJ1LTjiEUQ5h3sQ

This is the time that I say Facebook does something good as when a disaster happens someone starts a page with all the information and everyone posts, gets together to help out with trucks, cars and whatever else is needed. It is one way for the word to get out fast and I call them all heroes.


So let us all pray for all those in the path of the fires and that this nightmare will end soon.


We are reminding everyone today to make sure your emergency bag is ready, your microchip is up to date, and that you are ready to go if necessary.


Please be safe 


With love from Layla

Helping Pets in need during the Lock Down

TGIF !!!!!!!!!!

Friday has arrived, first Friday in August and we decided to dedicate our blog this week to an amazing organization that has just started,  a Free Pet Food Pantry in San Francisco, in one of the areas where the residents have been hit hard economically.


This organization is called the Latino Task Force. I am sure you will ask who they are ? 

They formed as a clearinghouse of COVID-19 information and resources for the Mission District community. The group has more than three dozen community-based organizations, along with City Government partners, that are working together to meet the needs of immigrants, families, elders, homeless, LGBTQ, youth, and other Latino populations who are experiencing challenging times during the pandemic.

It’s an all volunteer organization that provides boxes of food to 7,000 people a week. SFDOG is working with the San Francisco SPCA to distribute dog and cat food as part of the services operating at the Mission Food Hub three days per week. They are recruiting volunteers to hand out food and raising funds to keep purchasing food for families to feed their pets.


You can see the links for the Latino Task Force and SFDOG below.

This is the link  :     https://www.ltfrespuestalatina.com/contact

This is the link :     https://sfdog.org/blog/help-san-francisco-families-feed-their-pets


The SPCA and Pet Food Express (An amazing pet store where I shop all the time) contributed food to kick off the pantry. And they will purchase food through the SPCA at their corporate partner rate on an ongoing basis. They are at this moment  testing the pantry on a three-month trial, which could be extended and expanded to other locations. As it stands with the Mission Food Hub, they can only distribute pet food that is shipped directly from the manufacturer.

Thank you David from SFDOG for allowing me to share your photos
Thank you David from SFDOG for allowing me to share your photos


I am putting it out here if you manufacture pet food/treats and would like to donate I am sure it will be welcome. Thank you.

Our pets are our family, I always joke that Layla eats better than me but then she is my furkid so there is no question about that, and as I am watching pets unfortunately being dumped at shelters as families cannot afford them at this moment it is a reminder that there are solutions, amazing people out there who are helping in whatever way possible and we must learn to reach out and ask for help.


So Layla and I want to thank these fantastic volunteers for all the amazing work you are doing, you are our heroes this week.


Do you have a free pet food bank in your city ?


To all our furfriends, please be safe, wear masks and remember you are not alone, we are unfortunately all in the same boat today.


With a woof and love from

Layla